• Health and safety on your walk

    Safety Information

    • Please take care when crossing all roads – look and listen and don’t get buried in the walking instructions... or in the middle of the road!
    • Wherever possible main roads are crossed at a Pedestrian Crossing, so wait for the green man. You are responsible for your own safety.

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    The Questions

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    This symbol, next to a question, means that the answer is close by.
    Other questions are general knowledge (or someone on your team can Google).

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    ...and finally,
    Good luck everybody

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  • 1 Tower of London

    Turn left out of the exit from Tower Hill station and then right down some steps with the entrance to the station on your right. Continue straight on down a set of steps and into an underpass.

    At the end of the underpass turn left and walk along with the Tower of London on your right. Go straight on through another underpass and immediately up a set of steps on your left.

    Stop at the top of the steps and look around you towards a white building on the other side of the road.

    The building you see was the home of the Royal Mint from 1686. The ability to produce coinage that the world trusted gave the English seafarers a lot of power and provided a solid foundation for the growth of the British Empire.

    If you are unable to negotiate steps go straight on out of the exit from Tower Hill station and into Trinity Square Gardens. Keep along the left hand path in the gardens and exit from the gardens to your left after the War Memorial on your left. Cross straight over Byward Street at the pedestrian crossing, taking care with the cycle lanes as well as the traffic. Go into the pedestrian area with the Tower of London on your left. Take the slope on your left (not the pavement at street level) and head towards Tower Bridge keeping the Tower of London on your right. Go straight on and then through an underpass. At the end of the underpass, turn right and meet your team at the bottom of the steps ahead of you after they have answered questions 1 and 2.

    Seafaring Nation Question 1 and 2

    1 / 2

    Before 1686 where was the Royal Mint located?

    2 / 2

    Eye iconName the site that the mint is built on.

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  • 2 St Katherines Dock

    Turn left at the top of the steps towards Tower Bridge keeping on the extreme left pavement.

    Turn left down the steps signposted St Katharine Docks.

    For the first part of the walk we are going to be walking around St Katharine Docks and answering questions as we go.

    St Katharine’s Docks unloaded wine, brandy, tea, rubber, marble, ivory, sugar and other valuable commodities.

    There are no questions here.
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  • 3 Commodity Wharf

    Walk along St Katharine’s Docks with restaurants on your left and the docks on your right, Commodity Wharf.

    At the end of the wharf look for a plaque on the end of the buildings commemorating the tea trade.

    Seafaring Nation Question 3

    1 / 1

    Eye iconGetting the tea back to London necessitated speed as the first cargo’s commanded the highest prices.  What type of ship did Finlay’s use?

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  • 4 The Dickens Inn

    Turn right with Ivory House on your left and then walk under some warehouse buildings.

    At the dockside turn left and right over a bridge towards The Dickens Inn.

    There are no questions here.
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  • 5 Devon House

    With your back to Dickens Inn and the docks on your right walk across the quay and then turn left towards a slope with a barrier across it at the end.

    Turn right and right again with Devon House on your left. Walk up the slope on the red brick road. Turn left before the bridge so you have the lock which was the main entrance to the docks on your right.

    At the riverside turn right over the bridge at the lock entrance. Enjoy the views of Tower Bridge and stop at the sun dial to answer a couple more questions.

    You are a 1/4 of the way through he walk

    Seafaring Nation Question 6,7, 8 and 9

    1 / 4

    Eye iconThe sundial is never precise. To this end there is a formula for adding or subtracting minutes dependent on the time of the year. In July would you?

    2 / 4

    Where is the limit of the Port of London Authority upriver from here?

    3 / 4

    Lightermen were employed at St Katharine’s Dock. What service did they provide?

    4 / 4

    The Pool of London stretch of the River Thames runs from London Bridge to Limehouse.  We will be following it on the South side of the river. On a sad day in 1838 a famous ship from the Battle of Trafalgar was brought into a dock in the Pool for breaking up.  What was her name?

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  • 6 Tower Bridge Quay

    Turn right with the River Thames on your left. Walk past Tower Bridge Quay and the fountain of a dolphin with a girl.

    2

    Seafaring Nation 9a (History)

    1 / 1

    Back in Time From the 'Back In Time' map, what was the name of the wharf on your left, immediately before Tower Bridge?

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  • 7 Tower Bridge

    At the end of the walkway next to Tower Bridge turn right and go up the stairs ahead of you on the side of the bridge. Do not take the steps up the interior of the bridge.

    Turn left at the top of the stairs walking on the left-hand pavement of Tower Bridge. Stop half way across the bridge.

    If you are unable to negotiate the steps go straight on up the slope on the right hand side of the road leading to Tower Bridge. At the top turn back on yourself and cross Tower Bridge on the left-hand pavement. Stop half way across the bridge

    Seafaring Nation Question 10

    1 / 1

    Eyes right. Here you have the world famous HMS Belfast. How many years has she been anchored in the Pool of London?

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  • 8 Tower Bridge Second Tower

    Stop at the second tower of Tower Bridge and look around you.

    Seafaring Nation Question 11

    1 / 1

    Eye iconGiven a royal charter in 1282, Bridge House Estates was set up to manage the income from London Bridge. Today it manages Blackfriars, London, Southwark, Millenium and Tower Bridge. It has its own emblem and flies it proudly on a flag on Tower Bridge. Which flag?

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  • 9 Walk towards Rotherhithe

    Between this tower and the arch stop on the left hand side and look to the left down the river towards Rotherhithe.

    In the distance you can see the church tower of St Mary’s Rotherhithe, next to our destination.

    Notice the warehouses on both sides of the river, originally built to hold the goods arriving and departing by ship, but now converted to apartments. Imagine the industrial past and the clamour of the docks when they were in full operation.

    Seafaring Nation Question 12

    1 / 1

    Eye iconHow often each day would dockers gather for the "call on".

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  • 10 Shad Thames

    Continue along the bridge and immediately after the arch turn left for a lift down to river level, or there are steps a little further on your left signposted “Engine Rooms and Gift Shop”.

    Out of the lift turn left, out of the stairs turn right onto a cobbled road – do not go back under Tower Bridge.

    You are now walking along Shad Thames between warehouses. The gangways above you, between the warehouses, were used by the dockers to move the goods away from the river warehouses to be taken to market.
    This is your last chance for coffee and other refreshments until close to the end of the walk.

    There are no questions here.
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  • 11 Pont de la Tour

    After the restaurant called Pont de la Tour you will find a plaque on your left underneath the Cantina sign.

    There are no questions here.
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  • 12 Curlew Street

    After the plaque take the next road on your left, Curlew Street which is just before All Bar One.

    Once you get to the River Thames turn right and walk along. You will see some Thames Barges on the opposite side of the river.

    You are now half way through the walk.

    Seafaring Nation Question 13,14,15 and 16

    1 / 4

    As ships came in off the high sea they needed to offload on to smaller vessels which would take the goods upriver. The Thames Barge was born. It had no keel so could sail far up the Thames and its tributaries. To stop drift these barges had a device to replace the keel.  What are these devices called?

    2 / 4

    Eye iconWho is based at HMS President?

    3 / 4

    Eye iconFind an information board at the end of this pedestrian area, after Brown’s Brasserie.  The Neckinger river flows into St Saviours Dock. What is its name derived from?

    4 / 4

    HMS Harpy (also known as Harpy Boathouse) was originally a Customs & Excise floating office. When it was a tax office what did HMS stand for?

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